Stroke is a global health concern. A timely response to a stroke can help reduce morbidity and mortality. However, barriers to timely response include poor recognition of stroke symptoms. Stroke symptom messages are designed to increase stroke recognition and encourage individuals to seek urgent medical assistance. The Face, Arm, Speech, Time (FAST) and Balance, Eyes, Face, Arm, Speech, Time (BE FAST) are commonly used stroke symptom messages shown to improve stroke symptom recognition and response. However, cultural factors and language differences may limit the effectiveness of stroke symptom messages and their acceptability in different countries and contexts. There has not been a comprehensive examination of the stroke symptom messages used worldwide and how these messages have been adapted in various settings.
We explored what stroke response messages are being used globally, and the contextual factors that influence the adoption of a stroke response mnemonic in different settings.
A 14-item survey was disseminated by the World Stroke Organization to its networks. The survey contained open- and closed-ended questions and allowed uploading relevant stroke symptom campaign materials. The survey was analyzed using descriptive statistics and a content analysis.
All except one survey respondent used a stroke symptom message. Fifteen respondents (27%) reported they did not translate their stroke awareness messaging. Of these 15 respondents, they used the English versions of FAST (n = 8), BE FAST (n = 4), and both FAST and BE FAST (n = 3). Forty respondents (71%) reported that they/their organization used an acronym to raise public awareness of the signs/symptoms of stroke that was different from FAST or BE FAST (English), many of which were direct or indirect translations or influenced by FAST and BE FAST. Survey responses shared insights and recommendations related to the content, tailoring and dissemination of stroke symptom messages.
Study findings highlight the global use of stroke symptom messages and their contextual adaptations to fit diverse settings and contexts. The challenges in applying universal or commonly used stroke symptom messages to different contexts were highlighted.
Nurses could have a key role in raising awareness of stroke symptoms and the development of locally adapted stroke symptom messages.
Creating a healthy work environment requires balancing organizational goals with ethical responsibilities, where head nurses' ethical leadership can shape staff outcomes by mitigating work–family conflicts and promoting nurses' well-being, retention, and patient safety. This study aims to analyze the mediating role of work–family between head nurses' ethical leadership and nurses' reported errors, turnover intention, and physical and mental health.
Nationwide Multicenter cross-sectional study.
Validated self-report scales were used to assess nurses' perceptions of head nurses' ethical leadership, work–family conflict, error, turnover intention, physical and mental health. Descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted. Structural equation modeling examined the relationships among these variables based on Della Bella's and Fiorini's framework.
Data from 409 nurses across seven Italian hospitals was analyzed. The structural equation model showed an excellent fit. Head nurses' Ethical leadership was negatively associated with work–family conflicts, turnover intention, and errors, and positively associated with nurses' health. Work–family conflicts were significantly linked to turnover intention, errors, and nurses' health. Work–family conflicts mediate the relation between ethical leadership and turnover intention, errors, and nurses' health.
Promoting healthy work environments is crucial for nurses', patients', and organizations' well-being. Ethical leadership helps achieve this condition by reducing work–family conflicts, fostering nurses' well-being, decreasing turnover intention, and improving care quality. Disseminating ethical leadership programs and integrating with work–life balance policies can therefore strengthen both staff retention and organizational outcomes.
Ethical leadership can foster patient care, reduce turnover intention and errors, and improve nurses' well-being. Therefore, maintaining employee performance and organizational results requires integrating work–life balance policies with ethical leadership development programs.
The study adhered to The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology checklist.
This study did not include patient or public involvement.
The study was preregistered on the Open Science Framework https://osf.io/8jk37/overview.
This study did not include patient or public involvement in its design, conduct, or reporting.
To examine the paradox of representation without power in nursing leadership and to highlight how gendered hierarchies persist in academic, clinical, and policy arenas despite nursing's predominantly female composition.
Existing systems of evaluation and promotion often reproduce inequities by undervaluing relational and collaborative leadership styles—forms of leadership intrinsic to nursing practice. This commentary draws on global and contextual perspectives to advocate for accreditation and institutional metrics that integrate equity indicators and recognize inclusive leadership as a marker of excellence.
Advancing gender equity in leadership is both an ethical and strategic imperative. Embedding equity education and inclusive leadership development within nursing curricula from the earliest stages of professional formation is essential to reshape the future of nursing leadership.
Promoting gender equity in leadership will strengthen nursing's contribution to health systems, enhance organizational resilience, and advance equitable patient care.
This article challenges the tendency to frame diminished confidence and ethical uncertainty among nurses as individual shortcomings. While the need for up-to-date knowledge and moral clarity is undeniable, this piece argues that systemic factors—such as inadequate institutional support, unsafe staffing, and lack of access to continuing education—play a significant role in undermining nurses' ability to act ethically and confidently. Drawing from global case examples, including the Ebola crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, this article highlights how moral distress often stems not from ignorance or weakness, but from structural barriers and ethical overload.
Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are essential for evidence-based nursing care. However, the quality of reporting and adherence to methodological standards in Latin American nursing journals remains unclear. This study evaluates the characteristics, reporting quality, and potential risk of bias of RCTs published in Latin American nursing journals.
To assess the reporting compliance and risk of bias of RCTs published in Latin American nursing journals.
Meta-research study.
A comprehensive handsearch of 29 Latin American nursing journals was performed covering publications from 2000 to 2024. Identified RCTs were assessed for adherence to CONSORT reporting guidelines and evaluated for risk of bias. Outcomes were classified using the COMET taxonomy. A descriptive analysis was performed.
A total of 6377 references were screened, identifying 34 eligible RCTs, most published after 2018. The median CONSORT compliance was 19 reported items (IQR 16–22). High compliance (> 90%) was observed in abstract reporting items, study objectives, and participant selection criteria. However, critical methodological features such as randomization procedures, blinding, and protocol registration showed low adherence (< 40%). Risk of bias was mostly rated as having “some concerns”, largely due to insufficient reporting. According to the COMET taxonomy, the most frequently reported outcome domains were “Delivery of care” and “Physical functioning”.
Reporting compliance and risk of bias of RCTs published in Latin American nursing journals presents significant gaps, particularly in key methodological domains. These shortcomings hinder transparency, reproducibility, and integration into evidence synthesis. Strengthening editorial policies and enforcing reporting standards could enhance the quality and reliability of published research in Latin American nursing journals.
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths. The training of professionals on brief tobacco interventions (BTIs) increases the effectiveness of these interventions.
To assess the effectiveness of an online training program on BTI based on the 5As and 5Rs model in acquiring anti-tobacco brief advice competencies among nurses.
Quasi-experimental study with a pre-test and post-test design, with a control group and without random assignment. In the experimental group (EG), online training was provided in three sections: BTI theoretical content and methodology, clinical scenario videos, and feedback. Each scenario assessed the 5As and 5Rs as a validated instrument (BTI-Prof(C)). The control group (CG) only assessed the three videos of clinical scenarios. In both groups, competence was measured at the following points in time: T0 (before the training), T1 (at the end of the training), and T2 (after 90 days). The efficacy of the intervention was measured through a two-way ANOVA, and the variation rate was calculated from T0 to T1 and from T0 to T2.
236 nurses participated (157 EG; 79 CG). The mean age was 42.9 years, and 76.7% were women. There was a significant group*time interaction in the three cases, indicating that the online BTI training increases the competence of these professionals in clinical scenario 1 (F = 10.210; p ≤ 0.001; η 2 = 0.081), clinical scenario 2 (F = 6.235; p = 0.002; η 2 = 0.051), and clinical scenario 3 (F = 11.271; p ≤ 0.001; η 2 = 0.090).
A brief, asynchronous, and online intervention using standardized video-based cases is effective in improving nurses' BTI competence. This type of training can be a useful option for the National Health System as part of a global and continuous strategy for nurses to perform BTI.
An asynchronous online training program provides nurses with standardized, evidence-based tools to implement brief tobacco interventions in routine care, offering a scalable and practical solution to strengthen preventive strategies in health systems.
The climate crisis impacts global health and is exacerbated by the healthcare sector's emissions. Nurses, as the largest professional group, are key to promoting climate-resilient, low-carbon health systems. Integrating climate change and sustainable development into nursing education is crucial, yet gaps remain in understanding their representation in curricula and practice. This review examines the role of nursing in addressing climate change and sustainable development, focusing on their integration into education and related recommendations.
A narrative literature review was conducted to synthesize existing recent research on nursing, climate change, and sustainable development. No restrictions were applied to study design; however, studies published before 2017 were excluded.
A search was conducted in PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar (January 2023, and updated in August 2024). Relevant studies were screened and duplicates removed. Data extraction followed inductive content analysis, with coding and categorization being undertaken collaboratively. MAXQDA PLUS 2022 was used for analysis, and new findings from the follow-up search were incorporated into existing categories or new ones were developed.
The review analyzed 33 articles on nursing's role in addressing climate change. Findings highlight gaps in knowledge, delayed responses, and the need for nurses to take on leadership roles. Education is crucial, yet curricula integration remains limited. Nurses must engage in advocacy, interdisciplinary collaboration, and policy development. Barriers include a lack of faculty awareness and overloaded curricula. A collective call for action urges nurses to embrace sustainability, strengthen research, and lead in achieving climate resilience.
This review highlights the need to integrate climate change and sustainable development into nursing education and practice. Nurses are vital to public health and to addressing climate change, but education gaps hinder their potential. Future research should focus on improving curricula, exploring Advanced Practice Nursing leadership roles, and addressing healthcare system challenges.
Integrating Sustainable Development and the Climate Crisis into nursing education and practice is crucial to preparing nurses for the health challenges posed by environmental changes, as well as for ensuring effective patient care, disaster response, and policy advocacy. Their integration is a process and should be viewed as being a consequence of the delayed responses, as identified in this review. This process should specifically address the identified gaps, such as the lack of basic knowledge concerning climate change and sustainable development, as well as learning to take on leadership roles in practice. More specifically, taking a leadership role includes both acting as a knowledge multiplier and increasing the health literacy of the general population.
Older adults may experience a wish to die in the context of deteriorating health, a loss of autonomy, loneliness, or depression. Home care workers may likewise experience burden or symptoms of depression as a result of prolonged contact with this physical and emotional suffering. Training initiatives that can support the well-being of home care workers are therefore important.
To describe the typical profile of older adults who express a wish to die to their home care worker, and to examine whether a psycho-educational intervention for care workers exploring the end-of-life process and self-care strategies had an impact on the older adult's wish to die and on the care worker's perceived burden and depressive symptoms.
Quasi-experimental, longitudinal study involving non-randomized experimental and control groups and follow-up at 3–6 months post-intervention.
At the start of the study, all care workers (n = 126) provided sociodemographic information (age, gender) for themselves and the care recipient, and completed the Karnofsky Performance Status scale and the Assessment of the Frequency and Extent of the Desire to Die (AFEDD) interview to provide a baseline measure of the care recipient's functional status and wish to die. They also completed the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) as a measure of their own perceived burden and depressive symptoms. The AFEDD, BDI, and ZBI were completed again by care workers at 3 and 6 months post-intervention.
The typical profile of care recipients was a woman aged 85.5 years who required considerable support and assistance and who had at least occasionally experienced a wish to die, although these thoughts were not always verbalized. Scores on the AFEDD remained relatively stable over the follow-up period in both the control and experimental groups. There was no significant association between the older adult's wish to die and depressive symptoms in the care worker across the study period. However, a positive and significant correlation between a wish to die in the older adult and perceived burden in the care worker was observed at 6 months post-intervention in both the total sample (p = 0.032) and among controls (p = 0.028). By contrast, this significant association was not found for care workers in the experimental group (p = 0.376), suggesting that the psycho-educational intervention may have had a protective effect.
Although further studies are needed to corroborate and extend these findings, the results suggest that psycho-educational interventions aimed at increasing home care workers' understanding of the end-of-life process and which introduce them to self-care strategies may help to reduce their perceived burden when the older person for whom they are caring expresses a wish to die.
Home care workers may find it challenging to care for an older adult who expresses a wish to die. Psycho-educational interventions that enhance care workers' understanding of the end-of-life process and teach them self-care strategies could help to support their well-being and their ability to provide adequate care.
Pregnancy can cause stress for couples, potentially leading to anxiety. However, most studies on antepartum anxiety focus on expectant mothers, ignoring the expectant fathers and the stress transmission between couples. We aim to examine the mediation of dyadic coping between antepartum anxiety and stress in expectant mothers and fathers.
We implemented a cross-sectional study in Guangzhou, China, from October 2023 to January 2024.
Three-hundred and twenty-nine Chinese pregnant couples completed the Perceived Stress Scale, the Dyadic Coping Inventory, and the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory. The actor-partner interdependence mediation model was used for data analysis.
Expectant mothers experienced antepartum anxiety symptoms at a rate of 42.6%, while the rate for expectant fathers was 32.5%. Regarding the actor effects, stress was positively associated with antepartum anxiety in expectant mothers (β = 0.66, 95% confidence interval CI [0.56, 0.74]) and fathers (β = 0.58, 95% CI [0.42, 0.70]), with dyadic coping acting as a mediator (expectant mothers: β = 0.08, 95% CI [0.03, 0.14]; fathers: β = 0.11, 95% CI [0.04, 0.19]). Regarding the partner effects, maternal dyadic coping was positively associated with paternal stress (β = 0.10, 95% CI [0.01, 0.19]).
The study highlights the interplay of stress, dyadic coping, and antepartum anxiety in expectant mothers and fathers, emphasizing the need to assess their antepartum anxiety and implement couple-centered interventions to enhance their psychological well-being during the first trimester of pregnancy.
This study highlights the importance of assessing antepartum anxiety in both expectant mothers and fathers, emphasizing the mediation of dyadic coping in reducing stress and anxiety. The findings support the integration of couple-centered mental health interventions into routine antepartum care to enhance psychological well-being during pregnancy.
The way communication is conducted directly influences the professional–patient relationship, how patients cope with their diagnosis, and their sense of hope throughout treatment. This study aims to map the literature on strategies that healthcare professionals can use to promote hope in communication with pediatric patients and their families in the context of chronic illness. Based on this objective, the study highlights an algorithm to assist healthcare professionals in instilling hope in this population through communication.
Scoping review.
This systematized review was conducted using the databases PubMed, LILACS, PsycInfo, Embase, CINAHL, and Scopus, employing the PCC framework and the Boolean operators AND and OR. The time frame was limited to the last 20 years (2004–2024). A total of 734 studies were identified across the databases, with an additional four retrieved through manual citation searches, resulting in 19 articles included in the final sample.
The findings highlight three key pillars for promoting hope in communication: (1) careful preparation for information delivery, which involves identifying the diverse needs of families and creating a physically comfortable and emotionally supportive environment; (2) providing information and emphasizing how it is presented—considering content, clarity, honesty, empathy, and adaptation to the recipient's specific needs; and (3) follow-up after information delivery, ensuring emotional support and active, skilled listening.
Interpersonal communication between the healthcare professional, the patient, and the family was mainly focused on the transmission of information about the disease and treatment in a clear and empathetic manner, considering who is receiving the information and how the information is interpreted.
This review provides guidance for healthcare professionals in implementing communication strategies that foster hope in the context of pediatric chronic illness. Additionally, this guide may serve as a model for training students and healthcare professionals. Further research is needed to implement and explore additional effective communication strategies for this population across diverse cultural settings.
Patients with advanced cancer often face numerous physical, psychological, and practical challenges from their disease and treatments, yet interventions addressing their specific unmet needs remain limited.
This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a tailored psychoeducational intervention (PEI) on stress, anxiety, depression, coping, and fatigue among advanced cancer patients in Indonesia.
A randomized controlled trial was conducted from August 2022 to March 2023 in Indonesia.
A total of 151 advanced cancer patients from a referral hospital in Indonesia were randomized into intervention and control (conventional management) groups. Participants were assessed using validated questionnaires including the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), and Brief COPE at three time points: baseline (T0, before intervention), after first intervention (T1), and after second intervention (T2). The PEI was delivered face-to-face with telephone follow-up calls. Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) analysis was used to evaluate the intervention's effectiveness.
The intervention was significantly associated with improved coping and reduced fatigue scores. Significant time effects were observed for depression, stress, coping, and fatigue scores. For anxiety, a significant impact was found at the second time point but not at the third, compared to the baseline. The difference-in-difference (DID) analysis revealed significant effects on coping and fatigue scores, while anxiety only showed significance at the second time point.
This study provides evidence for the potential effectiveness of PEI in improving coping strategies, relieving stress, anxiety, and depression, and reducing fatigue among advanced cancer patients in Indonesia.
The tailored PEI, including follow-up phone calls, can be independently implemented by nurses. Focusing on patients' unmet needs and spirituality, this intervention can help manage mental health issues and strengthen coping mechanisms, potentially leading to positive effects on physical conditions such as fatigue.
Smoking is a major global health problem. It kills more than half of the users. At least 1.18 billion people smoked cigarettes every day as of 2020. Although many interventions for tobacco smoking cessation have been implemented, their effectiveness remains unclear. This study aimed to assess the long-term effectiveness of various smoking cessation interventions in adults.
We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials reporting long-term outcomes.
Evidence searches were conducted in the Cochrane Library, Embase, Medline-OVID, PubMed, Web of Science, and Clinicaltrials.gov. Two researchers searched until August 2023 without restrictions on country, language, or year of publication. The risk ratio (RR) for continuous abstinence was obtained through biochemical verification at measurements ≥ 6 months post-intervention. Data were extracted and assessed for quality using Risk of Bias 2. Meta-analysis was carried out using a random effects model. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression were performed to explore moderator variables. Sensitivity and publication bias analyses were also performed.
Twenty-two effect sizes from 13 studies showed that tobacco smoking cessation interventions increased continuous abstinence by 2.5 times (RR 3.52; 95% CI; 2.19–5.65). The highest ratio was in the behavioral intervention (RR 7.83) with more than 6 months of therapy (RR 10.57). The tobacco smoking cessation intervention worked better in 55–64 years (RR 7.29), especially in Asia (RR 10.08). The intervention was more effective for female respondents (RR 4.21) and combination therapy format (RR 3.82). However, meta-regression showed that differences in gender and therapy format did not significantly influence the effectiveness of tobacco smoking cessation interventions in adults (p values 0.2748 and 0.8769). Sensitivity analysis (p-value 0.0025) further strengthens the evidence of the conclusions and credibility of the findings.
Behavioral therapy lasting more than 6 months was the most successful tobacco smoking cessation intervention in respondents aged 55–64 years, especially when implemented in Asia. Although not significant, therapies delivered in combination formats, especially in women, have the potential to increase continuous abstinence for adults. These findings provide important evidence for developing effective prevention and treatment strategies for long-term smoking cessation concerning the type, format, and total of therapy.
Today in academia and health care, creating a vision and crafting a career path that progresses toward that vision is essential. Career cartography is the comprehensive and iterative process of applying the science of cartography within the context of policy toward achieving a career with impact.
The purpose of this article is to advance the knowledge and application of the original publication as described by Feetham and Doering in 2015. Career cartography supports scientific thinking, communicates science, and addresses the uncertainty of a career.
We conducted a critical analysis of differences between the original publication and our current practical experience of career cartography. Workshops conducted the past 10 years have advanced our understanding of the career cartography components and their utility to one's career. This analysis is informed by a review of the 25 publications citing the 2015 publication to evaluate how scholars report applying the process across health professions and organizations.
All components of career cartography are expanded beyond the 2015 publication to include application of the process with exemplars.
Career cartography is an effective guide across disciplines and at all stages of a career for determining, directing, evaluating, and communicating one's career and its impact.
The intentional and ongoing use of career cartography maximizes the impact one's chosen career can have on improvements to health and health policy.
Global organizations have pronounced about the importance of involving people in health care, however, this process is challenging. Given the availability of evidence that addresses people's experiences of involvement in nursing care, it is important to produce recommendations at this point by synthesizing the evidence. So, this review aims to synthesize the available qualitative evidence about people's experiences of their involvement in nursing care in a hospital setting.
Systematic review of qualitative evidence.
This systematic review was conducted according to the JBI methodology for systematic reviews of qualitative evidence. A comprehensive search strategy was conducted in nine databases/resources. The selection process, methodological quality assessment, and data extraction were conducted independently by two reviewers. The data were synthesized using the meta-aggregation approach, and the results were graded according to ConQual.
A total of 75 findings and 141 illustrations were extracted from the 15 included studies. These findings were aggregated into 12 categories and generated into three synthesized findings: (1) People who are hospitalized conceptualize and attribute importance to involvement in nursing care as an active process of participation and monitoring of care, decision-making, opinion, and partnership; (2) The establishment of a relationship between hospitalized people and nurses, trust, communication, and information are essential for participation in care; (3) People's participation in care is affected by the person's own constraints and preference for assuming a passive role, by barriers associated with a lack of information, the organization of care, the relationship established between nurses, and paternalistic attitudes.
People who were admitted to hospital conceptualized and attached importance to this phenomenon, perceived the conditions necessary to promote it, and the barriers they experienced.
This systematic review provides recommendations for nurses' clinical practice (with grade B). It recommends that nurses should establish a partnership relationship with hospitalized people, through trust, communication and information; give people the opportunity to monitor care, participate in decision-making and give their opinion; assess the person's preferences for involvement and other factors; and that the barriers to this process identified here should be assessed and addressed in each context. As such, this review provides very valuable information for nurses' clinical practice and should also be incorporated into health policy.
Protocol Registration: PROSPERO CRD42024506501.
Despite evidence supporting nurse-led digitalized diabetes interventions, gaps persist in understanding their specific impact on community-dwelling patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Prior reviews lacked a quantitative synthesis of these interventions' effects on outcomes like self-care, HbA1c, and quality of life (QoL), limiting their applicability to clinical practice. This study aimed to systematically evaluate and quantify the effectiveness of nurse-led digitalized diabetes management programmes for community-dwelling adults with T2DM.
We searched six databases to identify relevant articles from their inception to June 2024. Randomized controlled trials that evaluate the effects of nurse-led digitalized diabetes management programs for community-dwelling patients with T2DM were included. The Cochrane Risk of Bias tool version 2.0 was used to appraise the included studies. The pairwise meta-analysis was performed through the software Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 3.0.
Eleven RCTs were included, encompassing 2943 participants from various regions. Nurse-led digitalized programs significantly improved self-care behaviors (SMD = 1.15; 95% CI: 0.49 to 1.81), and QoL (SMD = 0.65; 95% CI: 0.37 to 0.94). The interventions also demonstrated a clinically meaningful reduction in HbA1c levels (MD = -0.25%; 95% CI: −0.43 to −0.06), highlighting their potential in improving glycaemic control. Heterogeneity across studies was substantial for self-care but moderate for HbA1c and QoL.
Nurse-led digitalised diabetes management programmes effectively enhance self-care behavior, reduce HbA1c levels, and improve QoL among community-dwelling patients with T2DM. These findings underscore the potential of digitalised interventions as scalable and accessible alternatives to traditional diabetes management, particularly in non-institutionalized settings.
Nurse-led digitalised diabetes management programmes can empower community-dwelling patients with T2DM to achieve better health outcomes by enhancing self-care and glycaemic control while improving QoL. Their integration into routine clinical practice could address barriers to care, optimize diabetes management, and reduce the long-term burden of the disease.
The International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) identifier: CRD42024594874
Approximately 25% of the Brazilian population suffers from mental disorders, a prevalence exacerbated by systemic and cultural factors such as socioeconomic inequalities, underfunded mental health services, regional disparities, and persistent stigma. These conditions significantly impact hospital care. Nurses, due to their direct contact with these patients, face challenges ranging from managing physical conditions to handling verbal aggression and psychiatric crises. This study aimed to assess the scientific evidence regarding nursing care for hospitalized patients with psychiatric disorders.
A systematic review with a mixed-methods approach was conducted, registered in PROSPERO (#CRD42022359288) and guided by PRISMA standards. Databases, such as MEDLINE, LILACS, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and BDEnf, were searched using keywords like “Mental disorder,” “Psychiatric health,” “Nursing care,” and “Hospital.” Methodological quality was assessed using JBI and SQUIRE tools. The integration of quantitative and qualitative components occurred through meta-aggregation of qualitative data and frequency-based coding of quantitative themes, allowing thematic convergence across study designs.
Six studies were included. Meta-aggregation revealed frequent terms, such as “Nurse,” “Emergency,” “Screening,” “Patient,” and “Care.” Similarity analysis linked “Nurse” with “perception” and “experience” and “Emergency” with “Screening” and “Mental health,” highlighting the importance of experience and training. Five categories emerged: (1) professional experience (19.05%, showing skill gaps despite experience); (2) caring process (19.05%, stressing efficient screening); (3) barriers and challenges (19.05%, revealing difficulty with comorbidities); (4) training process (19.05%, identifying training deficiencies); and (5) therapeutic interventions (23.81%, discussing restraint use). These percentages refer to the proportional frequency of themes identified across the total number of studies analyzed. For thematic classification, only statistically significant chi-square values (p < 0.05) were considered in the grouping of content.
Nursing care for psychiatric patients in hospitals faces challenges like insufficient training and difficulty managing psychiatric comorbidities. Recommendations include incorporating structured mental health content into nursing curricula and hospital-based continuing education programs. These strategies may guide future healthcare policies in Brazil by improving patient safety, reducing hospital readmissions, and promoting more humane, evidence-based therapeutic interventions.
The findings emphasize the urgent need for targeted education and training to improve nursing care for psychiatric patients in hospital settings.
Dementia notably increases fall risk in older adults, leading to major injuries and considerable concerns from health-care professionals. However, comprehensive evidence regarding the prevalence, incidence rate, and moderating factors of falls in institutional settings is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence, incidence rates, and moderating factors of falls among older adults with dementia in nursing homes and dementia-specialized care units.
A meta-analysis.
We searched CINAHL, PubMed, Embase, ProQuest, Scopus, Web of Science, and PsycINFO from database inception to April 30, 2024. Older adults with dementia in nursing homes or dementia-specialized care units were included. The pooled prevalence was analyzed using a generalized linear mixed model with random effects using R software. Incidence rates were reported per person-year using comprehensive meta-analysis software. Study quality was assessed using Hoy's criteria. Variations in the pooled prevalence of falls were explored through moderator analyses.
This meta-analysis included 21 studies involving 35,449 participants. The pooled prevalence of falls was 45.6%, with subtypes showing 39.2%, 35.2%, and 29.0% among Alzheimer's dementia, vascular dementia, and mixed dementia subtypes, respectively. Falls were more prevalent in dementia-specialized care units (53.0%) than in nursing homes (42.6%). The overall incidence rate was 3.61 per person-year, higher in dementia-specialized care units (5.80) than in nursing homes (3.17). Subgroup analyses revealed higher fall prevalence in women (70.0%) than in men (30.6%). Meta-regression indicated that comorbidities, including delirium, visual impairment, and arthritis, increased fall risk.
This meta-analysis revealed a high incidence of falls in nearly half of older adults with dementia, particularly among those in dementia specialized care units.
Healthcare professionals should prioritize regular fall risk assessments, tailored interventions, and environmental safety modifications, particularly in dementia-specialized care units, to reduce fall-related injuries and improve patient outcomes.